Is There Such A Thing As A Free Lunch?

It was with some initial hesitancy that I agreed to meet up with a journalist last Tuesday (22nd May). My hesitancy stemmed from the media's all too often negative views/stance on foraging & wild foods. That said, there are many quality articles (on foraging) and journalists out there who take their role more seriously than those that tend to, on a daily basis, generally espouse misinformation, fear and sensationalism to the masses (poss. ibly for fear of not making it in the industry). Quality journalists are usually and especially from more independent and exploratory media agencies. Fortunately for me, both the journalist, Ethan Shone and the Leeds based magazine he writes for, The Overtake, are independent and actively exploring the world of 'whatever' while reporting back in a fair, open-minded and positive style. Here is a link to the online publication that followed our meeting and wild woodland cook-up:https://theovertake.com/~british-food-week/free-lunch/

If you do read the entire article you'll notice that 'Foraging & Wild Food' came out as the favourite way to get a free lunch, pipping it to the top spot over; mobile apps, freeganism and (believe it or not), friends. I also didn't do anything out of the ordinary in order to convince Ethan, I just did what I generally do with plants, make something tasty from them.

Comments

Unripe Figs in Syrup

Preserved Unripe Figs. Batch #1 I recently acquired a copy of 'The New Wildcrafted Cuisine' by, Pascal Baudar (many thanks to Dominick Tekos for sending it me). Despite the fact that he resides in California, much of the books content is applicable with regards to techniques, philosophies, creativity and inspiration, and some of the wild plants, regardless of where in the world you reside. Understanding our native floras & faunas is the same the world over I guess. Climates, habitats, techniques, cultures etc do differ but I firmly believe we all have innate and transferable knowledge and practices, whether they be ancient or contemporary (some yet to be rekindled/discovered/attained even), and we can adapt them to our own wild plants, landscapes, seasons, resources and requirements. Now, moving swiftly on to the main theme of this post, the figs. Pascal has a recipe for preserving unripe figs in syrup, I'm aware of a

Fermented Japanese Quince Pickle

I love lime pickle but I love my Japanese Quince pickle even more! Lime pickle is great, it smacks your taste buds all over the place and I like that, it's salty, sour, tart, citrusy and then those spices come in to play with that amazing heat toward to the end. So after last years Japanese Quince harvest (end October, early November) an idea struck me, why not make a pickle akin to lime pickle, quince are tart and have that sour, citrus appeal but with a more delicious attit ude, so I set about making one. After chopping and removing the seeds, I salted the quince to start a short fermentation process, I later added a range of spices and have left it alone ever since (well, not quite true, I have had a few sneak previews to taste how it's been getting along, who wouldn't and besides, I'm making it :) ). The initially hard quince have softened nicely and they have become beautifully infused with the spices while retaining that distinctive quince flavour and aroma. Fe

Winter Fungi: Velvet Shank

Winter Fungi: Velvet Shank (Flammulina velutipes). Velvet Shank are the wild alternative to the cultivated form, 'Enokitake' that you find in shops (long tall slender stems with tiny white caps, usually sold in tall plastic sheaths) . This readily recognisable fungi is like a ray of golden sunshine amid the generally muted and darker hues of winter - camouflage is not it's strong point. This gregarious and social fungi can be found growing on dead/dying logs & stumps, on a variety of tree species including Beech, Sycamore & Horse Chestnut . Regarding edibility, in my opinion they are top notch & more appealingly so due to the time of year they are found, winter, the hardest season in the foraging calendar. They have a great mushroom flavour with a slight sweetness reminiscent of caramel. So, what can you do with them? Fresh, young ones are delightful raw , they can be gently fried in butter, added to broths, pickled & make a great mushroom pate, t

Edible Leeds - Wild Food Foraging Courses and 4 Wild Seasons Pop Up Dining Events

Search This Blog